Pre VD Planning:  Quinn
by DryadSpeaks
Summary: Spinoff of The Smile on Your Face Chapter 76.  Quinn and Rachel go help Quinn's grandma get ready for moving.  Discussion topics include what Q should give Artie for VD, Rachel's gift to Martin, and just general Gram awesomeness.


"Oh Quinn, I must thank you again for inviting me to come along and help your grandmother pack up her belongings," Rachel said, smiling as they drove down the highway. "I'm always pleased to be of service when people require assistance."

Quinn smiled back. "Well, thanks for offering! It's going to make it go a lot faster with three people."

Rachel nodded. "It is always best to have as many hands working as possible. Are you and Artie doing anything special for Valentine's Day?"

"Well, I know Artie has some things planned," Quinn said, keeping her eyes on the road. "I need to get him a gift, but I just don't know what I should get!"

"Do you know what he has planned?" Rachel asked. "I wonder if that has anything to do with Martin..." she trailed off, unsure of whether or not she should continue. She wasn't sure if Artie had told Quinn that he was going to be spending the day with Martin.

"Martin?" Quinn asked, as they made the turn heading towards her grandmother's house. "What about Martin?"

"Well, he just said he was going to be spending the day with Artie, and I was wondering if maybe that had something to do with it," Rachel said. "Oh, Quinn, this neighbourhood is lovely!"

Deciding that Rachel's comment about Martin wasn't worth discussing at that time, Quinn nodded her head. "I used to love coming here when I was little. I still love coming here...it just doesn't happen often enough, which is why I'm glad that Gram is moving closer."

"I do think it's fantastic that your grandmother is moving closer to where you live," Rachel said, as they pulled into the driveway. "It's important to have your relations close by."

Quinn agreed with her, as she shut off the car and they got out.

"Oh, before I forget," she said, as they met up in front of the car. "I haven't told Gram that Artie uses a wheelchair. Not because I'm trying to hide anything from her, or because I'm ashamed, obviously. She just...has some old-fashioned ideas sometimes, and I don't think it's important to highlight that fact for her. She'll see when she meets him. I don't want her to have some sort of preconceived notion before she's even seen him. And she does that sometimes."

Rachel nodded. "I will not mention it. I can understand your situation here, as people are often put off by the fact that I have two gay dads, before they get a chance to meet them."

Quinn nodded, not really understanding the link between Artie's wheelchair and Rachel's gay dads, but she assumed it must make sense to Rachel, and that was good enough for her. She filed the thought in the back of her mind for later.

They hadn't even made it up the stairs yet, when the door swung open, and Quinn's grandma hurried out onto the porch.

"Oh Quinn," she said, "I'm so glad you're here! And you must be Rachel. Thank you for offering to come help us out today."

Quinn smiled, as Rachel extended her hand. "It's very nice to meet you, Mrs. Weaver," she said. "And of course it is my pleasure to help you with packing up for your move."

"Why don't you girls come in so we can get started," the older woman said, leading them back into the house. "Quinn, I haven't done very much since last time you were here. I just hope we have enough time."

As they followed her into the house, Quinn was about to respond, when Rachel piped in.

"Not to worry, I'm certain we will have enough time to get everything accomplished today," she said. "I've made sure to keep my whole day open so that we can stay as long as necessary. As I was saying to Quinn earlier, I have excellent packing skills, and I'm sure that everything will just go splendidly."

Gram glanced over her shoulder at Quinn, lifting one of her eyebrows and smirking slightly, and Quinn just smiled back, hoping that her smile would be interpreted as, "we'll talk about this later."

**

* * *

**

After a couple of hours packing, Quinn and Rachel found themselves being ushered into the kitchen for a drink and a short break. After Gram had poured them each a glass of lemonade, and arranged some cookies neatly on a plate, she sat down to join them.

"Gram, I wanted to ask you about something," Quinn said, reaching for one of the cookies. "I'm trying to come up with a great Valentine's Day gift for Artie, and I don't know what to give him! I thought maybe you might have some ideas."

"Do you have anything specific in mind?" Gram asked her. "You know, Quinn, if you would just let me meet your young man, perhaps I'd be better informed and could make a suggestion. What kinds of things does he like?"

Quinn shrugged. "Well, he likes lots of things. He likes music, and various technology things, and kittens..." she trailed off. "I just don't know what to give him. I want it to be special and original."

"Perhaps you'd like to make him a kitten relationship calendar?" Rachel asked, putting down her glass. "I'm sure he would love to have different kittens for each month with your faces on them."

Gram glanced sideways at Rachel, before glancing over at Quinn.

Quinn couldn't tell if her grandmother was getting ready to say something to Rachel, but thought it best to speak before anyone else had a chance.

"I do think he would like that," she said to Rachel, restraining herself from saying that she wouldn't be caught dead making one of those. "But that's kind of your thing, and I want to do something original for him."

"One year I made a lovely scrapbook for your grandpa," Gram said. "I worked on it for weeks. You have less than twenty four hours, so I don't advise doing that. Sweetie, why did you leave it so late?"

"I thought I still had time," Quinn said. "And then I realized that I actually didn't. He's been sick for the last few days, and I got caught up in that and just...forgot," she said. "And I know he's going to do something amazing, and he deserves to have something amazing done for him, and I just don't know what to do!"

"Perhaps you could sing him a song," Rachel said. "I know that he would love that."

"That's a great idea," Gram added. "And you have such a beautiful voice. He'd love that!"

"I did think about that," Quinn said. "But he's already done that for me." Standing up, she added, "I'll be right back."

**

* * *

**

As Quinn headed back to the kitchen from the bathroom, she heard her grandmother ask Rachel a question. She stopped outside the door to listen.

"So, Rachel, dear, what do you think of this Artie fellow that's dating my granddaughter? As of yet I haven't been allowed to meet him, and would like to get someone else's opinion on the boy."

"Oh, Mrs. Weaver," Rachel began, "Artie is one of the most delightful people I have ever met! He is charming and sweet and has an excellent sense of humour."

"And you're not just saying these things because you're a friend of Quinn's?" the older woman asked.

"No, I would never do such a thing," Rachel said. "Honesty is a very important trait for people to have, and I pride myself on being honest at all times, even when it may be inappropriate for the situation. If I had any problems with Artie, I would detail them to you right now."

"Well, you do seem sincere," Quinn heard her grandma say. "I just hope that you are, for everyone's sakes. Because if that boy hurts my granddaughter, there will be hell to pay. I may just be an old lady, but if he does anything to her, he will suffer the consequences, and they will be severe. And I ask you this...what kind of self-respecting young man likes kittens?"

"I honestly think that Artie has only the best intentions," Rachel said. "And kittens are very delightful to be around. I can see how he would like them. I think everyone likes kittens."

Quinn decided she'd better get back in the room before the conversation went any further.

"I think we'd better get back to work," she said. "We still have a lot of stuff to do."

"Nonsense Quinn, we're almost done," Gram said to her. "Sit down for a bit longer. And tell me some more about Artie so we can come up with the perfect gift for him."

Sitting down, Quinn thought for a moment. "Well, he makes me feel special and loved," she said. "And he's pretty much the sweetest person I've ever met."

Gram nodded. "Your grandfather was like that," she said. "Well...mostly."

Quinn giggled, remembering her grandfather. In some ways, Artie reminded her a lot of him. They had similar personalities, but her grandfather also had quite a temper, which Artie didn't have...to Quinn's knowledge.

"I know he'll like whatever I give him," she said. "I just want it to be really special."

"Perhaps there is an activity the two of you could do together," Rachel said. "You could get him a gift certificate. Perhaps a day at the spa?"

"Is the boy some sort of nancy-pants, that he would enjoy a day at the spa?" Gram asked, before Quinn could respond.

"Oh, not at all," Rachel said. "I just thought it might be a fun and relaxing activity that he and Quinn could enjoy together."

Quinn giggled. "That's a great idea, but I honestly don't think he'd go for it. And besides...isn't that what you got for Martin?"

Rachel nodded. Before she could say anything else, Gram cut in.

"Dear, do you mean to tell me you plan on taking this Martin to a spa? Don't you have any respect for his manhood? This is one of the reason today's men are so soft, because women want them to be their companions and share in things instead of being men."

Quinn burst out laughing at the expression on Rachel's face. For the first time in...possibly ever, Rachel Berry was speechless.

"Gram," she said. "I'm not going to take Artie to a spa. And trust me...Rachel definitely has respect for Martin's manhood. And that...sounds really dirty," she finished quietly, almost to herself.

Rachel's eyes widened at Quinn's statement. "Mrs. Weaver, I can assure you that Martin's manhood will most certainly not be compromised in any way. And he is quite the proper gentleman, and not soft at all!"

The older woman sat back in her chair. "If you say so," she said. "And now, ladies, we'd better get back to work."

**

* * *

**

As they finished packing up the last of the boxes, Quinn opened one to double check the contents before labelling it. She peered inside, and it was as if she'd been struck by a bolt of inspiration-laced lightning.

Grinning, she replaced the lid on the box. She knew what she was going to give Artie for Valentine's Day.


End file.
